Islam Makhachev Considers Boxing Match Against Conor McGregor

Islam Makhachev walked out of UFC 330 with his welterweight belt still strapped around his waist and a 17th straight win on his record, but the victory over Ian Garry came at a price.

The champion has since been put through a series of MRI scans and is now staring down a different kind of opponent: lingering spinal issues that demand attention before he even thinks about Carlos Prates, Michael Morales, or anyone else waiting for a title shot.

Yet while his body heals, his next big move might not come in the cage at all.

A Saudi pitch, an Irish name

At the Zuffa 9 boxing event in August, Makhachev found himself pulled into a very different conversation. Turki Alalshikh, the Saudi power figure who has turned the kingdom into a new capital of combat sports, floated an idea that would have sounded outlandish a few years ago but feels right in step with the sport’s current era of crossovers.

Conor McGregor. In a boxing ring. Against Islam Makhachev.

Alalshikh even put McGregor on a video call during the event, planting the seed for a potential clash between the UFC’s most dominant active champion and its most polarizing superstar of the last decade. From there, the notion stopped being a fantasy and became something Makhachev now openly entertains.

“Maybe he’s dangerous in the first round”

Speaking to Ushatayka, Makhachev didn’t dismiss McGregor’s skill set, especially in a pure striking environment. Asked how dangerous the Irishman would be in a boxing ring, particularly after his ACL and meniscus surgery and a string of injury setbacks, the Dagestani gave a measured but confident answer.

“Well, if I say he's not dangerous at all, it would be wrong. Yes, maybe he's dangerous in the first round, but after that I don't think he has any chance.”

That line summed up where both men stand. McGregor, once the sport’s most ruthless finisher, is now a first-round threat wrapped in question marks. Makhachev, long known for suffocating grappling, now trusts his hands enough to imagine himself outboxing one of MMA’s most famous strikers over the stretch.

The evolution in his stand-up has been clear over the course of his UFC career. He no longer looks like a wrestler who can punch; he looks like a champion who can choose how he wants to win.

“Regardless of the purse, I’d box”

The obvious next question came quickly: what kind of money would it take?

The interviewer floated seven- and eight-figure numbers for a potential McGregor boxing match. Makhachev’s answer was blunt.

"I don't know. When it comes to boxing, they pay very good money."

Then he stripped away the usual negotiation dance.

"I don't know. Honestly, regardless of the purse I'd box. Specifically against Conor, yes."

That’s a telling stance in an era when crossover fights are often framed first as financial events and only second as sporting contests. For Makhachev, the appeal seems rooted in legacy and challenge as much as the payday. To step into McGregor’s chosen arena, under boxing rules, and try to beat him there carries its own kind of bragging rights.

McGregor’s shadow and Mayweather’s echo

McGregor is no longer the force who tore through featherweight and lightweight, and his recent comeback at UFC 329 ended in another brutal injury, this time an ACL and meniscus tear. The years have added wear and tear, courtrooms, layoffs, and the lingering sense that his best nights might be gone for good.

Yet his name still moves the sport.

He remains one of the most recognizable strikers in combat sports and has already proved he can at least survive on a boxing stage. In 2017, he went 10 rounds with Floyd Mayweather, the defensive master widely regarded as the finest boxer of his generation. McGregor faded late and lost, but he didn’t fold early, and that performance still echoes whenever his name is linked to another boxing crossover.

That was nearly a decade ago. Time, injuries, and inactivity have changed the picture. So has the rise of fighters like Makhachev, who bring a new level of composure and completeness to the cage.

Long shot or inevitable spectacle?

On paper, a Makhachev–McGregor boxing match looks like a stretch. One man is in his prime, reigning at the top of the UFC and currently managing spinal issues that must be solved before any training camp. The other is trying to claw his way back from serious surgery, with no clear timeline for a sustained return.

Yet combat sports rarely follow the clean, logical path. They follow the money, the story, and the personalities willing to lean into both.

Makhachev has now signaled he’s ready. McGregor has never shied away from a spectacle. And Turki Alalshikh has shown he can turn ambitious ideas into sold-out nights under Saudi lights.

If those three forces align, the question may not be whether the fight makes sense on paper, but how long it would take to sell out an arena once it’s announced.